Total population | |
---|---|
Extinct as tribe | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Cumberland Island and the adjacent coastal areas of the U.S. state of Georgia | |
Languages | |
Timucua language, Mocama dialect | |
Religion | |
Native | |
Related ethnic groups | |
Timucua |
Tacatacuru was a Timucua chiefdom located on Cumberland Island in what is now the U.S. state of Georgia in the 16th and 17th centuries. It was one of two chiefdoms of the Timucua subgroup known as the Mocama, who spoke the Mocama dialect of Timucuan and lived in the coastal areas of southeastern Georgia and northern Florida.
The Tacatacuru were among the first native tribes to meet French explorer Jean Ribault's expedition in 1562. They appear to have interacted amicably with the French when they people established Fort Caroline in present-day Jacksonville, Florida, in 1564. The Tacatacuru later became deeply involved in the Spanish mission system, and one of the first missions in Spanish Florida, San Pedro de Mocama, was established in their territory. Like other tribes in the area, they were greatly affected by Eurasian diseases and war with other peoples through the 17th century. By 1675, they had abandoned Cumberland Island and relocated south, where they merged with other Timucua peoples and lost their independent identity.